Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Sunday, February 15, 2015

Pennsylvania Bear Harvest Impressive Again In 2014

With the totals now official, the top
seven harvests in state history all have occurred in the past
decade.

It’s official: The trend of recent bear seasons taking their place in the
Pennsylvania record books continues.Pennsylvania hunters harvested a total of 3,366 bears in 2014, the
seventh-highest tally in state history, the Pennsylvania Game Commission
reported today.With 2014 totals now
official, the seven largest bear harvests all have occurred in the past
decade.The all-time high
was recorded in 2011, when 4,350 bears were harvested. Hunters harvested 3,510
bears in 2013 – the third-largest harvest on record.Hunters in 2014
harvested bears in 56 of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties, an increase compared to
2013, when bears were taken in 53 counties. Likewise, bears were taken in 21 of
the state’s 23 Wildlife Management Units (WMUs), which also is an increase
compared to 2013, when bears were taken in 20 WMUs.Forty-one bears
harvested by hunters in 2014 weighed 500 pounds or more.The heaviest bear in
the harvest, taken in Pittsfield Township, Warren County, by James M. Hultberg,
of Pittsfield, weighed an estimated 677 pounds.Two other bears
topped the 600-pound mark.Leon J. Graham, of
Morris, harvested a 630-pounder in Pine Township, Lycoming County during the
bear archery season, and Fred F. Stoltzfus, of Lewisburg, took a 623-pound bear
in West Buffalo Township, Union County, while hunting in the general
season.The remaining bears
on the list of the 10 heaviest from 2014 include: a 598-pounder harvested in
Muddy Creek Township , Butler County, by Jeffrey McClymonds, of Slippery Rock,
during the general season; a 597-pounder taken in Delmar Township, Tioga County
by John L. Thrush, of Boiling Springs, during the general season; a 596-pounder
harvested in Forks Township, Sullivan County, by Gary L. Heinsey, of Denver,
during the extended season; a 584-pounder taken in Washington Township,
Jefferson County, by Daniel J. Whaling, of Falls Creek, during the bear archery
season; a 579-pounder taken in Armstrong Township, Indiana County by Gabriel J.
Heckman, of Shelocta, during the general season; a 574-pounder harvested in
Tyrone Township, Blair County, by Ray E. Golden Jr., of Tyrone, during the
general season; and a 561-pounder taken in Sugarcreek Township, Venango County,
by Heath M. Bromley, of Oil City, during the bear archery season. Lycoming County,
perennially among the top counties for bear harvests again led the way with 286
harvests in 2014, up from 234 the previous year. Among other top counties for
bear harvests in 2014 were: Tioga, 274 (286 in 2013); Clinton, 179 (133); Potter
157 (196); and Centre, 117 (96).The four-day general
season again set the pace for the overall harvest, with 2,447 bears being taken
during that season. But the extended seasons and the archery bear season also
contributed to the totals. Statewide, 740 bears
were harvested in extended seasons while 170 were taken during the archery bear
season. Tioga County claimed
the highest harvest in extended seasons, with 71 bears taken after the close of
the general statewide bear season. Other top counties, and their harvest totals
during the extended seasons, were: Lycoming, 59; Wayne, 52; Bradford, 49; and
Potter, 46. Final county
harvests by region (with 2013 figures in parentheses) are:Northwest – 394: Warren, 100 (148); Venango, 71 (70);
Jefferson, 56 (70); Clarion, 54 (59); Forest, 41 (50); Butler, 28 (24);
Crawford, 26 (36); Erie, 13 (6); and Mercer, 5 (3). Southwest – 311: Somerset, 108 (106); Fayette, 103
(67); Armstrong, 35 (43); Westmoreland, 29 (41); Indiana, 19 (49); Cambria, 15
(26); and Allegheny, 2 (3). Northcentral – 1,382:
Lycoming, 286 (234);
Tioga, 274 (286); Clinton, 179 (133); Potter 157 (196); Centre, 117 (96);
McKean, 100 (108); Elk, 79 (103); Cameron, 76 (108); Clearfield, 72 (125); and
Union, 42 (41).Southcentral – 390: Huntingdon, 88 (67); Bedford, 70
(55); Perry, 55 (16); Mifflin, 42 (31); Blair, 41 (29); Fulton, 28 (19);
Juniata, 28 (28); Franklin, 19 (9); Snyder, 14 (18); Cumberland, 4 (1); and
Adams, 1 (0). Northeast – 794: Pike, 111 (150); Bradford, 108 (96);
Wayne, 87 (127); Monroe, 79 (79); Sullivan, 76 (105); Luzerne, 74 (98);
Susquehanna, 74 (56); Wyoming, 55 (66); Lackawanna, 51 (48); Carbon, 47 (57);
Columbia, 23 (24); Northumberland, 8 (14); and Montour, 1 (0). Southeast – 95: Schuylkill, 39 (35); Dauphin, 35
(23); Northampton, 9 (18); Berks, 6 (4); Lehigh 4 (0); and Lebanon, 2
(7).The final bear
harvests by Wildlife Management Unit (with final 2013 figures in parentheses)
were: WMU 1A, 12 (16); WMU 1B, 90 (94); WMU 2A, 1 (0)
WMU 2B, 3 (4); WMU 2C, 290 (247); WMU 2D, 148 (171); WMU
2E, 48 (93); WMU 2F, 262 (309); WMU 2G, 622 (575); WMU
2H, 68 (87); WMU 3A, 286 (362); WMU 3B, 366 (364); WMU
3C, 168 (196); WMU 3D, 296 (393); WMU 4A, 106 (80); WMU
4B, 141 (67); WMU 4C, 120 (93); WMU 4D, 260 (275); WMU
4E, 63 (68); WMU 5A, 4 (0); WMU 5B, 0 (1); and WMU 5C,
12 (16).Impressive as the
2014 bear harvest is, it’s worth noting the potential for an even bigger harvest
certainly was. A record number of
hunters – 173,523 – bought Pennsylvania bear licenses in 2014. The previous
record – 167,438 – was set in 2013. It also was a bumper year for mast crops
throughout much of the state’s core bear-hunting area. When little food is
available, bears tend to enter dens early. But in years when food is abundant,
they remain more active during hunting seasons. But the weather was
less than ideal through portions of the bear seasons. The archery season was
much colder, and wetter, than it had been in years. Still, 170 bears were taken
during the statewide archery season, but the total was down slightly from 2013
when 197 were harvested.The 2014 general
season began on a high note, with the opening day harvest up 21 percent compared
to 2013. And that increase came despite an ice storm that affected hunters
throughout northcentral Pennsylvania during the afternoon of the opening
day.The weather would
continue to have an impact on the general season, and the Monday harvest was
down 40 percent compared to 2013. Still, it’s
difficult to consider the seventh-largest harvest on record anything but a
success.And the prospects
for the trend to continue again next year already are good, said Mark Ternent,
the Game Commission’s bear biologist. The statewide bear
population has remained stable over the past seven years now, with the
population estimated most recently at 18,100 bears, Ternent said. Interest in
bear hunting has remained high, as verified by license sales. And the
opportunities to hunt bears are as plentiful as ever.“It’s always
difficult to predict exactly how good bear hunting will be in a given year,”
Ternent said. “But it clear we’ve had several banner years in the past decade,
and there’s nothing to indicate fantastic bear hunting won’t continue in 2015
and beyond.”What a decade for
bear hunting

The 2014
Pennsylvania bear harvest, the seventh-largest in state history, joined other
recent seasons near the top of the record books. With the totals now official,
the seven top harvests all have occurred in the last decade. Here’s a
look:

Pennsylvania Hunter-Trapper Education

Location & Schedule

Meeting on:

Located at:

You must cancel your registration before Saturday, March 28, 2015, at 8:00am.

Minimum-Age Policy

All registrants for this event must be 11 years of age by March 28, 2015.

Instructed by:

STEVEN R ALLIAS

This is a six-hour training class
required by law for all first-time hunters and trappers before they can
buy a license. You must pass a certification exam at the end of the
class to complete this training.Important In order to prepare for your class, read Chapters 1, 4, 5 and 9 located at Today's Hunter & Trapper in PA.

NOTE: You must be at least 11 years of age to register for this class!